Man in Napier standoff holding baby when he surrendered to police

The man who triggered a 12-hour standoff with armed police in Napier was holding a baby when he surrendered to police.

When the man, 25, emerged from the Alexander Ave property after the 12-hour standoff he was holding a baby, Stuff reports.

The standoff ended just before 2am.

The accused appeared in Hastings District Court this afternoon on charges of unlawfully possessing a firearm and discharging a firearm.

He was granted interim name suppression, and remanded in custody to reappear on July 17 in Napier District Court.

Napier police today confirmed a gun was fired as part of a 12-hour siege that ended early today.

Several school were forced into lockdown yesterday afternoon and streets were cordoned off. Residents were kept from their homes during the standoff for much of the night before police arrested a man shortly before 2am this morning. Armed police blocked off the street for hours and negotiators were on the scene prior to the cordon being lifted.

All the streetlights were also off, although police refused to confirm if they'd ordered them to go dark.

The public were alerted to the incident about 2.30pm when nearby William Colenso College, Richmond School, Henry Hill School and Maraenui Bilingual School were placed into lockdown and police set up a base on the corner of Dinwiddie and Waterworth avenues.

Rebecca, a resident locked out from Alexander Ave, said she went to pick her daughter up from school but when she got back they weren't allowed back to their home.

She heard a loud noise around 1pm - which she believed could have been a gunshot.

"It's not unusual to hear loud noises so didn't think too much after that," she said.

"It set our dogs off barking. I thought someone had crashed into my car but that looked fine.

"It wasn't until I left to get my daughter from school that police were everywhere. By the time I came home couldn't get back in."